Why are rounded corners so popular? · Wednesday June 14, 2006

I have heard many people asking why rounded corners are so popular in today’s web design. I tried to come up with some possible reasons, check them out and have a laugh.

Reason 1: Natural shape

I think one reason might be that a round shape looks natural to the human eye. After all, you don’t see too many straight lines in nature, do you? Clouds in the sky are not rectangles, many fruits and vegetables are round (apples, oranges, potatoes) and the Sun is also round. My point is that we are used to looking at round things, so it’s natural to like rounded corners.

Reason 2: Warm and soft feel

In relation to naturality, I think we consider round objects easier and safer to approach. They have a warmer ‘feel’ about them than straight-edge objects. I bet your coffee mug handle has rounded corners, not straight and sharp ones?

Reason 3: Women

Oh yes, my favourite reason made up so far. Come on, think about women for a while (if you weren’t thinking about them already!). They sure have lots of nice round shapes, don’t they? Oh yes they do. I’m almost certain no one can resist rounded corners after this reason!

Conclusion

My humble opinion about rounded corners is that they look natural, have a warm and soft feel, and are sexy. There you have it. And yes, of course I have rounded corners on my site, what did you think?!?

Tags: web design | web

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